


Dean and Cas Visit Hot Topic

by solomonara



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angel Heart, Dean and Cas visit hot topic, Ficlet, Fluff, M/M, One-Shot, angel dad, are there already two dozen of these fics?, for episode 10.20, hunter dad, this one is mine, very short
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-01
Updated: 2015-05-01
Packaged: 2018-03-26 14:44:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3854587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solomonara/pseuds/solomonara
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Since the writers couldn't be bothered to fit this scene in Angel Heart (10.20) I decided to take a whack at it myself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dean and Cas Visit Hot Topic

**Author's Note:**

> You have a boring bus ride on a Thursday morning to thank for this. I wrote it with a pen on a piece of a dead tree for you. You're welcome.

            "Dean, stop."

            "What's wrong?"

            "There's a mall."

            "...you having a sudden urge to smite capitalism?"

            "No. It's Claire's birthday."

            "So?"

            "The giving of gifts is a vital socioeconomic ritual that fosters inter--"

            "Ok, ok, I'm stopping."

 

            Once inside the mall, though, Cas was stymied. Fluorescent light poured down from high overhead. Somewhere, fountains saturated the air with the smell of chlorine and the rhythmic burble and splash of water cycling endlessly through a closed circuit of pipes and pools. It would have been soothing if it weren't combined deafeningly with the hum of a hundred conversations echoing against each other in the cavernous space. Add to that the particular smell of a dozen multinational varieties of cuisine slowly congealing into American impersonations of themselves and what you got was a formidable assault on the senses.

            In Castiel, this manifested itself as a pause and a perplexed look around at the parade of stores offering a bewildering assortment of products.

            "What does an 18-year-old want?" he asked Dean.

            Dean had no idea. What the hell was he even doing when he was 18, anyway? Well, Sammy would have been 14, so... family. Safety. A place to belong.

            "...weapons?" Dean said.

            "I'm not sure that's appropriate."

            "Shows what you know. Hey, look." A handful of people who looked like they could be about Claire's age walked past, all of them carrying black plastic bags with red writing. "We'll go there."

 

            The Hot Topic, however, was no less overwhelming than the rest of the mall - possibly even more so since it was contained in such a small space. Cas and Dean passed over the dozens of t-shirts on offer, all plastered with logos and words that, for the most part, were as arcane to Dean as they were to Cas. Dean plucked a Black Widow belt out of Cas' hands ( _C'mon, man, you don't know if she's for Marvel or DC. Can't take that risk._ ) and Cas vetoed the lighter Dean found that read "Troubled Childhood in Progress."

            "What about this?" Cas asked, picking out a necklace from a rack of jewelry. It was a black cord threaded through a silver five-pointed star set in a circle. "The pentacle is a symbol of order and protection. Claire could benefit from both."

            Dean doubted that the people who had designed the tag on the thing ( _Sterling Silver Pentagram - Rebel in Style!_ ) had gotten that memo. "Cas, if you want her protected we'll get her some tats. She doesn't need a - Christ - $18 piece of junk." Dean hung it back on the rack.

            "All right," Cas said uncertainly. He looked around somewhat hopelessly for something else. His unblinking gaze fell on a wall of underwear that seemed to be comprised mainly of lace, neon, and bad intentions. "What about--"

            "No!" Dean cast about and grabbed the first thing that came to hand. It was soft and fuzzy and not in the least sexy. "Here." He thrust it into Castiel's arms.

            "This cat looks disapproving," Cas said, staring down at the plush toy.

            "Well, so does Claire most of the time, so it's perfect. C'mon, Cas, we're in the middle of a case here."

            Cas consented with a final thoughtful look at the cat and they checked out with an employee who had been only partially successful at hiding her amusement with their whole trip through her store.

            "Tell you daughter I said happy birthday!" she said brightly as they were leaving.

            "Does she know you?" Cas asked the girl.

            "That's no - he means 'thanks,'" Dean said, steering Cas out the door. It was only a few steps later that he realized what she had most likely assumed. He shot a glance out of the corner of his eye at Cas, trying to gauge if he'd noticed.

            Indeed, Cas' brow was furrowed in deep thought.

            "Hey, Cas, don't let it - I mean, there's nothing wrong with it..."

            "Of course there is, Dean."

            "What?"

            "Presentation is an important part of the ritual."

            "... _what?_ "

            Cas stopped and gave Dean a look that suggested he was being particularly obtuse. He held up the Hot Topic bag and, with the same gravity he'd used to proclaim the end of the world and the same determination he'd used to save it no matter the cost, declared:

            "We have to wrap this."

**Author's Note:**

> ...but that's another story. One I don't plan to tell. It would probably just end up like the plastic wrap scene in [Demons, Drive Ins, and No Pie](http://archiveofourown.org/works/2634842) tbh XD


End file.
